Enclosed Trailer Recomendations
 

I am looking to upgrade to an enclosed trailer from my open trailer. In my area (Minneapolis / St. Paul suburbs) there are dealers for Haulmark, Classic, United, and Team Spirit. The Team Spirit trailer is very nice looking, but I have not really heard of them so I am not sure about the quality level.
Anyone have an horror stories on trailers to stay away from or recomendations on a certain brand?
I am thinking of going with a 26' tag with 5200 lb axles and basic cabinets.
Thanks
Chad

Re: Enclosed Trailer Recomendations
 

I have a 28 foot Classic and really like it. No problems so far, have owned it for four years. I did , after I bought it, put 16 inch wheels and tires on it.

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If you are going to upgrade go ahead and get everything you think you might want to start with. It is cheaper than doing it piece meal. We started with a Haulmark Thrifty Hauler for 5 years. When we decided to step up we found a Pace Shadow GT with Daytona package and all the goodies, extra cabinets, double doors, dragster ramps at Flyin A down in Missouri. Allen treated us real well.
If you're buying everybody out there is dealing, just don't scrimp.

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Buy the BIGGEST trailer you can afford!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Buy the BIGGEST trailer you can afford!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now that I have your attention about buying the biggest trailer you can afford think about all of the "crap" you are gonna be taking to the track with you. When you get that big box home and look inside your gonna say wow look at all that room.But,put a car /workbench/tool box/ jacks/ gas cans/etc and you run outa room REAL fast---
Not sure what you are looking at but get at least 2 roof vents and put a generator door on the left front corner as far to the front as you can--if its for a door car get at least 4-6 floor tie downs----

Trailer sales are real slow now so see if the dealer has any special equipment packages available too-I would buy a white colored one easier to sell down the road and no extra cost for the color either

Get HEAVY DUTY 16 inch wheel/tires and see if you can get a deal on a spare tire or 2
Other than that most all the trailers are pretty much the same some are definately better than others and some offer trackside repair /warranty services too
Ask around at the tracks see if they would buy the same trailer again what they do/dont like about their present trailer---My .02 cents---Comp 387

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I agree, buy the biggest you can afford and if it doesn't have 16's make sure you can get some to fit it.

If you have a door car I would advise a drivers side door on the trailer....and most important : measure the height of the wheel wells in the trailer and the height of the bottom of your car door to insure that the door will open if you drive your car into the trailer.

Jim

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I went through the purchasing of an enclosed trailer just over a year ago and I would highly recommend a Classic Dominator. I talked to many friends that owned several different brands and I wound up looking very closely at Pace and Classic. Like FED says earlier, the 16" wheels would be a VERY WISE move as well. I had blow-outs with 15" tires on my open trailer. If you're going to purchase a tag, get the 28'. If you want something longer, get a gooseneck.

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Best bang for my buck was a 28ft enclosed from Vintage Outlaw, lots of upgrades availible and all I did
was upgrade to the 16inch wheels. Call Smith trailer sales he runs a add in the back of ND and is
a great guy to deal with. Up front and honest is good policy in my book no BS. If your looking for top of the line a Pace is hard to beat but big dollars
I belive Dan Fletcher is a Vintage dealer also

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Call Mike Gardner @ Hillwood Sales he has an add at the top of the page

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I am NOT happy with my Haulmark. It's one year old. They use sheet metal for crossmembers. It is not a full frame. They cut the frame off behind the axles and weld in a piece of sheetmetal for the dovetail. The back door is 1" higher than the floor of the trailer. It cost me a $450 set of headers the first time I backed the car out of it. You have to order roller wheels for the back, added option they don't tell you about. The hydraulic jack, I paid $1800 for and it didn't come with a battery. Most trailer manu's sell the jack for $1200 with a battery. The light switchs are behind the double side doors, should have put them in the front of the doors. You have to climb inside the trailer to turn the lights on, wouldn't it be safer if you sould see to get in to the trailer? And they are not a member of the BBB. The dealer I bought it from is pretty good, but it was manufactured in Georgia and they stink at building trailers. I should have bought a Millenium.

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I can recomend both Mike at Hillwood and Kevin at Flying A. I just dont know if I can recomend Haulmark any more. The first one I bought from Hillwood was a 24 ft race trailer and it was great never had a problem with it and they were awesome to deal with. Got stupid and decided to get a bigger one and got a 28 a few years later from a dealer that is now gone not any problems with it either. Bought 3rd a 40' gooseneck with all the stuff I wanted three years ago. It was totaled 29 days after recieving it in a extremly bad storm that flipped it and truck over with car inside at my house but it had already started showing signs of problems. The one that has replaced it is a 44 ft. GN (now 2 1/2 years old and honestly It looks nice but has had more than its share of problems. If it could go wrong it seems it has. IE Light fell off wall and hit car doing damage just after getting it repaired/ repainted from storm deal, then the flap came off the rear door hitting the car again and putting a major dent on inside wall of trailer, rubber coin floor looks like I have moles under it, side door saggs and wont open/close right, wiring was pinched going to ac so when we installed the ac we had to pull a bunch of panels out to find the screw pinching it which is not a easy job due to the way they are built. Welds on both rear door latches broke plus some other small stuff. Now you might think no big deal warranty, yea right none of the local Haulmark dealers will work on it because all they sell is little trailers and they say its too big for thier shop. This after I was told you can take it to any dealer to get warranty repairs. Flying A is 3 hours away one way. I did finally arrange ( with kevin from flying A's help) to get some parts from Haulmark shipped straight to me but for the most part it has been on me to fix stuff when it goes wrong because its faster/ less hastle to fix it myself than it is to haul it to Cuba MO. and then go back the next week to pick it up loosing 2 days work to do so. If you do get a haulmark from a dealer that is not local to you make sure you have a dealer close who will do warranty. Maybe I am just having bad luck with this one but I am more than a little disapponted with it. For a 24 thousand dollar trailer it should be holding up better. Like I wrote before I would buy another trailer from Hillwood or Flying A in a heartbeat they are both great dealers but I think if I cant kick this racing addiction I just buy another brand from them next time.

Re: Enclosed Trailer Recomendations
 

Look at ATC trailers

Re: Enclosed Trailer Recomendations
 

When investing in a trailer I was able to buy a Goldrush first. I bought a stripped down unit. Bench, winch and tie downs. A battery for the break away brakes and 12 volt lights. No liner on the walls. It sold for the same money I paid 10 years later. It was fantastic. I bought another with lights, Changer and lining, winch and cabinets. Never had a tire problem as it was so light.
Bought a T and E Stacker used wonderful unit no porblems. Built another EXCELLENT. Sold for purchase price.
Tires use 16.5 on BIG trailers . Better lasting. Dont curb any of the tires below this size they are GONE.
If you can afford buy the Aluminum trailers, keep them nice and they will cost less in the long run. Resale in past kept up with the new prices.
26 ft is good for single car with room for golf cart across or longer.

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You should consider Kenny Anderson at Fast Farm Trailers. I'm over 3000 miles away from Kenny but he has helped me and others with trailers and accessories.

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No matter whose trailer you decide to go with, get the largest most heavy duty tire you can fit under your trailer

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Greg is correct! ATC trailers are light, cheap, and tow great. You can save a lot of fuel with a lighter trailer.

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Dick is right on target -- if your budget can stand it a Goldrush or Motorsport is the way to go .Five or ten years from now you'll still have a nice trailer that will be worth more than you paid new . And as a plus if you're going on the road it won't fall apart after a year or two -- ask any 'touring sportsman' racer .Even in this economy they're a great buy -- a used one might be in your reach if you can't afford new .

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I have a 2001 Classic RTX I bought new from Flying A and I have really liked it.

I have a friend that had a Pace, he did quite a bit if research before he got another trailer and he ended up getting a Classic also.

Good Luck,
Bill

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Your initial outlay may be greater but with a Featherlight or Goldrush it will be better in the long run. A lighter trailer, won't rust, and resale is great.

I made the mistake of buying a cheap off-brand and within 6 months the doors sagged, ramp didn't fit right and had 4 flat tires ( they used wheels that had been sitting in the warehouse so long that the valve stems rotted ).

Jim

Re: Enclosed Trailer Recomendations
 

I have owned Pace, Classic, and now Goldrush all bought new.
Dollar for Dollar Classic is the best buy for the money.
Goldrush is expensive and their customer service sucks.
I bought a $30,000 trailer that all the doors leaked dirt and water when it rains from the time it was brand new. I could not even get Goldrush to return my calls about sending me a new gasket seal for the doors.
In the earlier posts discussion was the return on investment was best on Goldrush or Motorsport. Both do bring good money when resale comes but if you take care of it a Classic will do the same. I had my Classic for 8 years and did get almost all my money back when I sold it. I did not have any problems with the Classic other than tire issues which were the 15" trailer models everyone seems to have issues with.
I had nothing but trouble with the Pace which I only owned for about 5 years.
I have had the Goldrush for 3 years now and like it except it still leaks around the gasket seals on all 3 doors.
It has 16" tires which are easier to get a heavy duty tire for and have had no tire issues with.
Goldrush is the gold standard but as I said the customer service really sucks.
Classic is the best buy for the money but do by a box tube frame model and not the I beam as they are lighter and pull better.
My 2 Cents

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If you can afford the goldrush it is worth the investment. I bought the 24ft from Dick and kept it for 10 years and got my money back out of it. The buyer could not believe that it was 24 yrs old when he looked at it.
Mark

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I have been really happy with my 24' ATC. Light, nice fit & finish, tows great. Tows even better now that I put 16" wheels on it with 10 ply tires that use 80 psi. Made more difference than I expected.

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Certainly anybody with a T& E will tell you that they are the finest....Just check one out at the track.....the resale is great....and it will last.....Fletchers is a T&E...with a zillion miles on it...T&E will also repair trailers of all makes.....and you guys will all love the customer service and quality...buy one and be sure....instead of hoping....

Rock Haas

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Thanks everyone for the input. I would not have thought to order the 16" wheels / tires as an option, but plan on it now no matter what brand trailer I end up with.
Has anyone had any experience with the Team Spirit trailers or the Bruce Litton (united) Trailers? I saw a few of these at the track last time and the fit and finish looked good, but I am not sure if they are built sound or not.
Thanks,
Chad

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You should check out the thread about trailer tires ! Some guys run even bigger tires like 17.5 inch
It'd be worth the safety factor to me......

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The other guys covered all the important stuff. The most important being weight and pruchasing the largest heavy dutiest tire,wheel and axle available. Do yourself a favor and see if someone will let you pull a trailer of the desired size with your rig. Then go home and sleep on it for a while before you decide on what you buy.

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Best advice.

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This is the thread about tires......good info

http://classracer.com/classforum/showthread.php?t=17114

Re: Enclosed Trailer Recomendations
 

Buy the biggest axles and tires. You won't go wrong.

Re: Enclosed Trailer Recomendations
 

John Dinkel Quote:
Re: Enclosed Trailer Recomendations
Buy the biggest axles and tires. You won't go wrong.

There is one issue you also want to think about on the biggest axles.
Do get the heaviest tires available, you won't be sorry there.
It is little known law about the total GVW on the rig you drive.
If the total GVW (Truck and Trailer GVW added together) exceeds 26,001 you need a class A or B license or a CDL if it is a commercial operation.
The GVW of the trailer is usually set by adding the total carrying capacity of each axle or is sometimes reduced by the trailer manufacturer if the frame is not rated to match the axle capacity.
I know this is a law not enforced very often but it is there.
A 1 ton dually and a fairly small trailer will have the GVW over the limit.
I went ahead and did get my class B last week after being in violation for the past 8 years and not knowing.
Just something to think about.
My 2 Cents